Panasonic VT20 Owners Thread

[mad]

One more question to Gurus,
What If I buy old stock, say manufactured about 18months back but never used in between (in the case of Croma selling huge discounted price, In fact, I am planning to get once, hence this question), cause any burn-in/IR or any special care need to be taken care as the Plasma/Phosphors settled for long time without activation?

Am I taking too much risk going for old stock (I agree huge discount means 'risk' too).

I just bought one. It should come tomorrow or the day after. Thanks to Khoj for his help.

Chroma has it on discount. Other dealers are not going down below 1.39L. Flipkart has it for 1.35L. The lowest online price is 1.1L.

 

[BLASTO]

Am I taking too much risk going for old stock (I agree huge discount means 'risk' too).

What risk are you talking about?
You get 3 year warrenty from panasonic.

Panasonic replaces the TV in case of defect with THAT year model.
Eg: If your TV goes caput next year same time, you get 2012 model as replacement with 2 yr warrenty. If it is close to 3 years from now, you get 2014 model with few months warrenty.

Others in comparison give 1 year warrenty with full refund.

 

[amol12]

Just found a stuck pixel while running the slides. Its not visible on red/blue slides but visible on white/grey and green slides.

 

[crusader]

Definitely, I was not looking out for any motion blurs, but since I had a LED tv earlier, I happened to see the differences. The PQ was the main difference. The PQ is totally different from LED, which looked a bit artificial when compared. Then happened to notice the blur also. I disabled the intelligent frame creation thingy and now I think the blur is not so noticeable to my eyes. Probably, my eyes will get adjusted.

i havent noticed any, but then i haven't looked for it either.

my motto is dont particularly try to watchout for any defects, u have already done the research, demoed the tv. so just watch it. if something is bad it will show itself, but if u are going to examine evrything critically i am sure u r going to pick up something in some channel or disc in some scene or other.

i have a 32 panasonic LCD in my office and it clearly has motion trails, but if u let ur mind do its job, 90% of the time u will stop noticing it unless there is
too much of it.

the human brain is wonderfully efficient that it can filter so many annoying things out

 

[Kartik]

Just found a stuck pixel while running the slides. Its not visible on red/blue slides but visible on white/grey and green slides.

Oops. That's bad luck.

Try to get the TV replaced from the dealer if the stuck pixel bothers you.

 

[mad]

For all you owners out there , do not pay too much money to panasonic for the wifi adapter. Panny gives you the same one as in link here.

Model:
WNDA3100 N600 WIRELESS DUAL BAND USB ADAPTER LANDING PAGE
Compatibility list:
WNDA3100 Compatible Panasonic TVs

You can buy them cheaper online or at your local computer markets.

Enjoy

Do you have a link to where this can be bought online?

 

[amol12]

Oops. That's bad luck.

Try to get the TV replaced from the dealer if the stuck pixel bothers you.

Point 7 on warranty card says there may be dots which are always lit or always off and its not a fault. It does not quantify how many dots though. From what I read LCD/LED manufacturers say customer must torelate a few dead/stuck pixels. For plasma too I read that similar policy applies but its unclear.
After carefully viewing it it does not seem to be 1 stuck pixel but 2 dead pixels - green and blue both adjacent to each other.

 

[satan]

It is a very old methodology still being done in the new era of plasmas. Plasmas used to have all the bad burn-ins in the world like 10 years ago. Those required extensive breakin procedure. The half life was 7 years at maz to start with.

We both seem to be talking about the same thing but in circles!

Yes it is old, but just because it is old does not mean it is redundant. Running slides is not just about fighting burn-ins / IR. It is widely used till today because it evenly ages the phosphors. Like you said in your own post, the TV will age differently in different parts if it is used to display anything other than slides during the first 200 hours.

I suppose you did the research already. Can you post it for the benefit of others? What is the advantage of using slides? How is it more useful than say, a TV static I mentioned?

The reason it is recommended by the pros is because it ages every single pixel across the screen evenly. When you say you have completed 200 hours after running in slides, that means every single pixel has been stressed at the same level for 200 hours and the panel truly has been uniformly stressed. When you use the TV to watch other content, then it's goes without saying that all pixels have not been stressed at the same level and that they are different points in their ageing process.

Another reason to do this is because you can achieve the best calibration especially when you use a spectrometer with software like CalMAN. If you have used your TV to watch regular programming then the spectrometer will pick up the differences in ageing and light / color output between the pixels of the panel.

People use TV static (also called snow) to fight IR but not to evenly age the panel since it is monochrome and not really a static image which is what pro's recommend when breaking in a TV. There might be other reasons as to why they don't use "snow" to break-in a TV (not being able to run the pixels through a full color gamut etc.) that I am not aware off.

Put this in your first post. A lot of people who are in this thread do that stating your first post.

First of all, posts here cannot be modified after a few hours have passed. Secondly, even if it could be, I wouldn't change it because my first post gives people both options which automatically means that I am not condoning one method over the other. It is purely a matter of personal choice, the operative word being "choice".

Agreed, But for most people, watching "some" content is better than watching "slides". All Iam saying is dont run the slides ALONE for 200 hours. Accelerating the uniform ageing process through any method is accepted when you are NOT viewing content.

Again this is matter of personal choice. I don't get why you are so strongly stressing and insisting that people don't run slides ALONE for the first 100 / 200 hours. It's up to them. If they don't mind not watching any TV programming for a week or so in order to get the perfectly exercised panel, why should we advice them otherwise, unless of course there is something wrong with it. I don't think either of us is as qualified as D-Nice to be offering a concrete statement on the subject.

I completely understand your point of view, but all I am saying is that you shouldn't make it sound like running slides is WRONG! Purists would always love to get the best possible picture and calibration. Take your example, despite so many settings available around the forum, you still had to tweak the TV and then tweak it some more till you found it to be acceptable viewing while most of us here were happy with the stock settings. Running slides is the penultimate way of getting the best picture. Is it something that the average user needs? Well that's always up for debate.

I'm an average user, but knowing that I got everything done right leaves me more contented even though I might never really be able to tell the difference.

Anyways this will be my last post on the subject. People are free to do their own research on the pros and cons of slides. I suggest we return this thread to the more pertinent issues like usage hours and firmware issues and calibration settings... you know... the fun stuff

 

[satan]

Point 7 on warranty card says there may be dots which are always lit or always off and its not a fault. It does not quantify how many dots though. From what I read LCD/LED manufacturers say customer must torelate a few dead/stuck pixels. For plasma too I read that similar policy applies but its unclear.
After carefully viewing it it does not seem to be 1 stuck pixel but 2 dead pixels - green and blue both adjacent to each other.

Amol I would still suggest that you talk to Panasonic about it or maybe even your dealer. Usually making a lot of noise tends to get some level of response from these guys.

If there is a chance, even a small one, that you can get it replaced, I say go for it.

 

[giddavr]

Do you have a link to where this can be bought online?

Netgear N600 Wireless Dual Band USB Adapter WNDA3100 - www.hydshop.in

 

[Amit21]

Hi All,

Gem added to my AV setup....Got my 50VT20 Installed yesterday and I am joining the proud league of VT20 owners.......:yahoo:
First Impressions - HD is mesmerizing.....SD is not up to the mark initially when setupbox was directly connected....but when connected through my Onkyo 808.....i noticed a remarkable change in SD quality too.....
Very excited to watch India Vs England today,:licklips:.....It has already started but m in office now:sad::sad:....will be watching England's inning.....

In the morning today i have checked the usage hours....its shows 3:59Minutes and 9 times it had been on/off......This is correct as i have used it for that much time from yesterday till today.....

 

[satan]

For those of you that have a PS3, I have great news!

The PS3 now supports playing MKV's and other formats natively without any media servers.

All you need is a jailbroken PS3 and a homebrew package called Showtime

 

[BLASTO]

Update for Hyderabad guys..

Got a call today from Croma that keyboard and TATA sky offer is extended to us also. Whoever purchased this month. :yahoo: :yahoo:

Still 4 sealed pieces available in hyderabad..

So the offer now is,

80k which includes,
50VT20
2 * 3D glasses
1 * Keyboard
3 Years Warranty
TATA Sky HD box
Scratch Card
5% off for ICICI credit & debit card. (1000 max)
Apart from that, usual wall mount and installation and demo free.

 

[illusion_heart]

Hi All,

Gem added to my AV setup....Got my 50VT20 Installed yesterday and I am joining the proud league of VT20 owners.......:yahoo:
First Impressions - HD is mesmerizing.....SD is not up to the mark initially when setupbox was directly connected....but when connected through my Onkyo 808.....i noticed a remarkable change in SD quality too.....
Very excited to watch India Vs England today,:licklips:.....It has already started but m in office now:sad::sad:....will be watching England's inning.....

In the morning today i have checked the usage hours....its shows 3:59Minutes and 9 times it had been on/off......This is correct as i have used it for that much time from yesterday till today.....

Good i read this post.....was thinking of buying the onkyo 3400s HT but will now need to to get an AVR which upscales.............will improve my SD picture as well to a certain extent ...

 

[som1]

Guys any news abt power consumption ... I have a sukam 800 va inverter ...
That used to power up my SONY 29" CRT ... But not able to power up my VT20
the inverter is ~2 yrs ... I am doubting the battery potency also ... What can be the issue ?? Else I have to shell out for a higher potency inverter n battery

Lastly do we need a stabilizer for our panel ?

 

[mad]

Guys any news abt power consumption ... I have a sukam 800 va inverter ...
That used to power up my SONY 29" CRT ... But not able to power up my VT20
the inverter is ~2 yrs ... I am doubting the battery potency also ... What can be the issue ?? Else I have to shell out for a higher potency inverter n battery

Lastly do we need a stabilizer for our panel ?

My TV is not connected up. But my friends tell me that I should get a stab. If the AC runs of a stab. So should a Plasma.

 

[khoj]

Guys any news abt power consumption ... I have a sukam 800 va inverter ...
That used to power up my SONY 29" CRT ... But not able to power up my VT20
the inverter is ~2 yrs ... I am doubting the battery potency also ... What can be the issue ?? Else I have to shell out for a higher potency inverter n battery

Lastly do we need a stabilizer for our panel ?

IIRC 800VA should be 600W. I very much doubt that it will be able to support the starting/switch over current requirement of the 50" screen unless of course you switch everything else off. Battery alone is not to blame. If you wish to run the Plasma on inverter backup you should consider changing to either a 1400VA or a 2100VA inverter either of which should be capable of recharging 185Ah batteries and then go with two 160 Ah or 150Ah (at the least) batteries to provide the necessary 24V current for the inverter.

 

[khoj]

Hi mad,

Get the product per the link Instead of the bulky stabilizer. Infact ask for a group buy deal

Power Solutions :: Home Solutions :: Power Doc :: Power-Doc 6AMP :: Su-kam :: Ek nayi soch

My TV is not connected up. But my friends tell me that I should get a stab. If the AC runs of a stab. So should a Plasma.

 

[Amit21]

@mad
By using inverter u r putting ur plasma at stake.....inverter doesn't provides pure sine wave (though it says that)....It is a backup device
stabilizer is used to feed ur equipment with proper voltage (I.e 230V)....it is used where there is frequent fluctuations..... It is not a backup device.

In case u want protection + backup than go for UPS ....preferable online (even lineinteractive can serve the purpose @ low cost than online)....

 

[Amit21]

@mad
By using inverter u r putting ur plasma at stake.....inverter doesn't provides pure sine wave (though it says that)....It is a backup device
stabilizer is used to feed ur equipment with proper voltage (I.e 230V)....it is used where there is frequent fluctuations..... It is not a backup device.

In case u want protection + backup than go for UPS ....preferable online (even lineinteractive can serve the purpose @ low cost than online)....